Solvent extraction studies of plutonium(IV) by crown ether dicyclohexyl-18-crown-6 (DC18C6) in 1-butyl-3-methyl imidazolium hexafluorophosphate (C4mimPF6) and 1-hexyl-3-methyl imidazolium hexafluorophosphate (C6mimPF6) room temperature ionic liquids (RTIL)

Abstract

Abstract Solvent extraction studies of Pu(IV) from aqueous nitric acid by crown ether (CE) dicyclohexyl-18-crown-6 (DC18C6) in 1-butyl-3-methyl imidazolium hexafluorophosphate (C4mimPF6) and 1-hexyl-3-methyl imidazolium hexafluorophosphate (C6mimPF6) room temperature ionic liquids (RTIL) were carried out at different temperatures in the range of 298 to 318 K. The least squares analysis of the extraction data indicated the extracted species at 1 M HNO3 aqueous concentration to be cationic complex with the formula Pu(CE)(NO3)2 2+. The thermodynamic parameters evaluated by the temperature coefficient method indicated that the reaction is favoured by decrease in enthalpy and is counteracted by decrease in entropy.